Corbyn Fordham, a top-ranked tight end, follows in his father’s footsteps to FSU, choosing legacy over Ohio State, driven by dreams of a national championship.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — In the mid-90s, the name Fordham was sprawled across the back of a Florida State jersey. Three decades on, that same name is back on the field with the garnet and gold.
“I’ve told them out of the gate, I said, look, you don’t owe me anything to go to my, where I went to school,” former Florida State offensive lineman Todd Fordham said. “You have to choose a place for you.”
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After racking up nearly 870 yards and nine touchdowns at Bolles, Corbyn Fordham was ranked as the 12th-best tight end in the nation by ESPN and had offers from top-shelf programs like Georgia, Alabama and Ohio State, where he initially committed. But in the end, he couldn’t pass up continuing the Fordham family legacy.
“One night I was in my mind like, I don’t want to go to Ohio State. I want to stay closer to home and follow in my dad’s path,” Corbyn said. “I just want to keep up the last name Fordham and, like, don’t doubt it, I’m going to keep grinding every single day to hold the standard for my last name.”
That standard is pretty high. Corbyn’s dad, Todd, was a captain at Florida State and was on the 1993 team that won the program’s first-ever national championship.
“Of course, it was nice to be on a team that won a national championship. I was standing on the sidelines in that game more than anything, obviously that’s fun, but it’s the relationships and people that matter,” Todd said. “I love Florida State, loved everything about it, what it did for me as a man and our family, so I’m excited that he’s getting to go there and experience the things that I did.”
Following his standout collegiate career, Todd spent 10 seasons as an offensive lineman in the NFL, starting with the Jacksonville Jaguars and he continues to pass every lesson he learned from his time in the league on to Corbyn.
“He critiqued me after practice on, like, what I should do better, what my strengths are, and I think that’s just a blessing to have a father who has been there and done the same thing you’re going through,” Corbyn said.
“I understand it’s hard, and I understand he’s a freshman and the guys on the other side that he’s going against are good players. So I try to encourage him more than I do tell him how they should do it or this is how I did,” Todd said. “I just give him some advice and then let him go. They’ve got to go and earn it and figure it out on their own.”
From growing up going to Florida State games to now getting to play in his own, Corbyn has already accomplished more than enough to make Todd proud. But there’s still one thing he’s eyeing.
“I came here to win a national championship, so I’m going to come in here and compete with my brothers,” Corbyn said.
“It would be awesome, and they can do it. They could do it this year,” Todd said.
Corbyn and Florida State’s quest to win a national championship begins Saturday, Aug. 29, when the Noles host the New Mexico State Aggies.